


Define family

by tappret43



Series: A Day In the Life of the Washington Sburbs [1]
Category: Homestuck
Genre: (Just a heads up), Confusing family trees, Deaf Character, Deaf Dave, Disciple married Signless after Karkat and Nepeta were born, F/F, F/M, HOH Roxy, Half-sisters Vriska and Aranea, Highschool AU, Human AU, I didn't include moirallegiances in the relationships tag so, I will add more tags as they become relevant, Jade and Jake are their cousins, John and Jane are twins, Lots and lots of pesterlogs, M/M, Mediocre Spanish, Meowrails, Multi, Nonbinary Jade, Parent death (mention), Scourge Sisters, headcanon time, pesterlogs
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-03-15
Updated: 2016-04-10
Packaged: 2018-05-26 19:33:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,740
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6252676
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tappret43/pseuds/tappret43
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>John/Dave/Karkat shenanigans, feat. Sibling Drama & (long-awaited) Moirail Comforting</p><p>First in a collection of oneshots following the same AU.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter One: In which literally everyone goes through denial

**Author's Note:**

> Wow. Here I am, finally posting this. I have like 5 disorganized works that I'm going to break up into parts to post as chapters for different fics in the same series.  
> I just wanted a fanfic with all my headcanons, so here it is.
> 
>  
> 
> Nevertheless!  
> More chapters on the way :33

carcinoGeneticist [CG] began pestering gallowsCalibrator [GC]

CG: TEREZI, ARE YOU THERE? I HAVE AN EMERGENCY.  
GC: WH4TS TH3 3M3RG3NCY?  
CG: MY DAD STARTED DATING SOMEONE…  
GC: WH4TS TH3 PROBL3M?  
CG: IT’S NEPETA’S MOM.  
GC: S3R1OUSLY??  
GC: SM4LL WORLD  
CG: TOO SMALL.  
CG: GOD, KANKRI WON’T SHUT UP ABOUT THEIR FUTURE TOGETHER AND IF THEY GET MARRIED.  
GC: MS. L31JON 1S N1C3. YOUD B3 LUCKY TO H4V3 H3R FOR 4 ST3PMOTH3R  
GC: 1 B3T N3P3T4 WOULD M4K3 4 N1C3 ST3PS1ST3R  
CG: OH GOD. STOP. I DON’T WANT TO THINK ABOUT THAT.  
GC: PR3TTY SOON, 1T M1GHT B3 YOUR L1F3! G3T US3D TO 1T NOW, 1 S4Y  
CG: I NEED TO TAKE THIS TO KANAYA OR ROSE OR SOMETHING. YOU’RE NOT HELPING.  
GC: >:?

carcinoGeneticist [CG] stopped pestering gallowsCalibrator [GC]

 

carcinoGeneticist [CG] began pestering grimAuxiliatrix [GA]

CG: KANAYA  
CG: KANAYA, ARE YOU THERE?  
CG: GODDAMMIT STOP MAKING OUT WITH ROSE AND ANSWER ME!  
GA: What Do You Need Karkat  
CG: OH NO, PLEASE GO BACK TO WHATEVER YOU WERE DOING. MY SERIOUS PROBLEM CAN WAIT FOR YOU TO FINISH YOUR MATING RITUAL WITH LALONDE.  
GA: What Is Your Problem  
CG: NO, DON’T WORRY ABOUT THAT. I WOULD *HATE* TO DISTRACT YOU FROM YOUR GIRLFRIEND OF THREE WEEKS. YOUR FRIEND OF SIXTEEN YEARS WILL ALWAYS BE HERE FOR YOU TO REMEMBER AFTER YOUR PREOCCUPATION RETURNS HOME AT CURFEW.  
CG: OH, DID I ALSO MENTION WE ARE FAMILY? SO YEAH. I’LL BE HERE.  
CG: TAKE YOUR TIME, KANAYA.  
GA: Just Tell Me Already  
GA: God Must You Always Be So Dramatic  
GA: You Have My Attention  
GA: Say Your Piece  
CG: OKAY.  
CG: OUR FAMILY IS EXPANDING  
GA: Im So Happy For You  
GA: When Is The Due Date  
CG: SHUT UP, KANAYA. I’M SERIOUS.  
GA: As Am I  
GA: Is It A Boy Or A Girl  
CG: KANAYA, STOP!  
CG: MY DAD IS DATING SOMEONE  
GA: I Dont See Why You Need My Help Yet  
CG: YOU DON’T SEE A *HUGE* FUCKING PROBLEM WITH THIS??  
GA: No  
CG: ALRIGHT. ALLOW ME TO SWEETEN THE POT OF THE HORROR THAT IS THE TRUTH OF MY FATHER’S PERSONAL LIFE  
GA: Oh Do Go Ahead And Do That  
CG: HE’S DATING NEPETA’S MOM.  
GA: Look Karkat  
GA: I Would Love To Continue This Ridiculous Conversation With You  
GA: But Ive Suddenly Become Very Busy  
CG: YOU KNOW WHAT? FINE  
CG: I CAN DEAL WITH THIS WITHOUT YOU.  
GA: Yes You Can  
CG: SHUT UP AND GO BACK TO MAKING OUT WITH YOUR GIRLFRIEND.  
GA: Gladly

carcinoGeneticist [CG] stopped pestering grimAuxiliatrix [GA]

 

“¡Karkat! ¡Venga abajo!” His brother, Kankri’s voice carried up to Karkat’s room from the foyer, reaching him just before he found another friend to chat with.

“La cena está lista. Please do not keep us waiting.” He sounded more impatient, and Karkat was afraid he knew the cause of the apparent rush.

Of course. His father's girlfriend was over for dinner. And let's not forget her… endearing children. He closed his laptop and hurried down the stairs, greeted at the bottom by his brother, who was shooing him into the dining room.

He took his seat next to Nepeta, the youngest Leijon daughter. She was fidgeting with the tassels on her bright blue cat-eared hat. It had been a gift from Karkat's father for her birthday, and she never took it off, a constant reminder of her intrusion on his family; that was how Karkat saw it, at least. She was sweet, cute, and charming, everything Karkat wasn't, and he hated it.

Across from him sat Meulin, Nepeta’s deaf older sister. She was about Kankri's age and got along with him famously, much better than he did with Karkat. He couldn't help but feel a bit envious of their relationship. Karkat wasn't nearly that friendly with Nepeta, who was almost a year and a half younger than him. Admittedly it was his own fault that he and Nepeta weren't very close. Whenever she reached out, he would shut her down using whatever excuse he had to. He could hardly stand being around her.

“Hi, Karkat,” Nepeta chirped, always the pleasure to see him. She smiled sweetly and he cringed. How was she always so damn happy?

“It's been a while since we've all been together like this, huh?” Karkat cringed. “And just think– we're gonna start doing this all the time!” He put his head in his hands and prayed that someone would just shoot him right there.

“Dinners are gonna be so fun! Oh! My mom has a lot of Taiwanese recipes at home. We could make them sometime!” Dear Lord, make it stop. “Does your family make Mexican recipes? I bet homemade Mexican food would be so good! Have you ever tried-” Nepeta continued, leaving Karkat no option but to lay his head down on the table.

“Karkat! Get your head off of the table! We have guests,” Kankri scolded, his posture and expression calm, it wasn't hard to tell when he was at the end of his rope. Karkat reluctantly complied, sitting up and asking God for the strength to sit through Kankri's prayer, let alone through the rest of the meal. Nepeta never seemed to run out of air, keeping up conversation with everyone at the table but Karkat.

As soon as the meal was finished and banter calmed down, Karkat immediately excused himself, clearing his place and retreating back into his own room without another word. He fell down onto his bed and groaned. There was no way he could keep doing this for the rest of his life. Their parents were perfect for each other, and Meulin fit right in, but the thought of having a new, clingy little sister was simply upsetting.

He eventually got bored of feeling sorry for himself for having such an unfair life, and went back to his laptop.

There had to be someone he could talk to. Let's see…

gallowsCalibrator is online

Terezi already proved to be no help at all. Next.

ectoBiologist is online

John? While he was the exact opposite of Terezi, practically her mortal enemy, he probably wasn't what Karkat was looking for. Next.

turntechGodhead is online

Oh hell no. Not a fucking chance. Next.

grimAuxiliatrix is offline

Oh, of course she was. Karkat knew her girlfriend was probably offline, too. Too bad. She always knew what to say in these situations, even if it wasn't quite what he wanted to hear.

New message from ectoBiologist

Ughhhh.

ectoBiologist [EB] began pestering carcinoGeneticist [CG]

EB: hey karkat!  
CG: EGBERT.  
EB: i just found an amazing movie!!  
EB: i didn't read the book it's based off of, but i'm about fifteen minutes in, and it’s amazing!  
CG: AND I CARE, WHY..?  
EB: well i thought you'd like it!  
EB: it’s about this girl anastasia, right?  
EB: so she’s doing like this interview for her friend because her friend is sick  
EB: and then she meets this super mysterious guy!  
EB: it's getting really good  
CG: DO YOU HAVE ANY FUCKING CLUE WHAT YOU’RE WATCHING, JOHN?  
EB: no? i don’t usually watch this genre!  
EB: anyway, i thought you'd like it. you're always watching those romance movies!  
CG: JESUS CHRIST.  
CG: I AM LEAVING THIS CONVERSATION.  
CG: FEEL FREE TO NOT LIVE TEXT YOUR MOVIE EXPERIENCE WITH ME. I HAVE SHIT TO DO.

carcinoGeneticist [CG] stopped pestering ectoBiologist [EB]

EB: karkat?  
EB: oh, fuck you!

 

Finally, Karkat got back to business. There had to be someone else he could talk to. Who else was left?

arachnidsGrip is offline

Not like Vriska was great company anyway. Karkat hadn't caught up with her in a bit, though. Kanaya occasionally mentioned her when they spoke, but he didn't really know what she was up to these days. Next.

gardenGnostic is offline

Of course, Jade was probably in bed already. Damn, did that girl love her shuteye. She was never known to get less than 11 hours of sleep each night, much to her friends’ dismay.  
Even if she was awake, Karkat reasoned, the two hadn't left things on very good terms, and Karkat wasn't quite ready to rehash all that right now.

With nobody else to consider, Karkat found himself at a crossroads. He could get off his computer and bore himself to death before admitting defeat and finally going downstairs to join his family on whatever the hell they were doing. Not the most appealing option, he had to admit. But it was that, or message…. him.

Yes, him. The embarrassingly straight white boy that, while still his best bro, was the love of his fucking life.

The two had been close for years, joined at the hip for most of them. The only thing that kept them from practically getting married was a buck-toothed idiot named John Egbert. He would interrupt “moments,” and he was an expert at buddy-zoning people for each other.  
Not to mention his first serious girlfriend was the backstabbing bully from Karkat's childhood. It was like John was intent on ruining his life.

After weighing pros and cons and, eventually, accepting his role as a total tool, he clicked his chumhandle. Here went nothing.

carcinoGeneticist [CG] began pestering turntechGodhead [TG]

CG: HEY STRIDER.  
TG: sup  
CG: ARE YOU DOING ANYTHING INTERESTING?  
TG: why do you care  
CG: BECAUSE I'M BORED OUT OF MY FUCKING MIND AND I NEED A REASON TO ESCAPE “FAMILY FUN-TIMES”  
CG: I SWEAR IF I HEAR NEPETA CALL ME KARKITTY ONE MORE TIME I'M GOING TO SHOOT MYSELF.  
CG: SO STOP WHATEVER “SICK BEATS” YOU'RE MIXING AND TALK TO ME BEFORE I GO INSANE.  
TG: i almost forgot what a goddamn pleasure it is to talk to you  
CG: YES. YOU'RE VERY FUNNY. I GET IT.  
CG: NOW CUT THE WISE GUY SHIT AND TALK TO ME.  
TG: jesus ok  
TG: uh  
TG: i dont know  
TG: how was your day  
CG: TERRIBLE. ALLOW ME TO ELABORATE.  
TG: oh boy

 

Dave Strider liked to believe he was a patient person, trying to keep his cool at all times and be tolerant towards others. Then Karkat would message him.

Dave took his headphones off and stood up from his desk. He claimed that , despite not being able to hear squat, he could feel the beats, and getting expensive headphones with boosted treble speakers was the exact kind of irony he was going for. He unlocked his phone and carried it with him out of his bedroom to the kitchen, occasionally checking at Karkat's messages to see if he had finished his story.

Sitting on the sofa nearby was his cousin, Roxy. She visited quite often from across town to see Rose, his sister. While the two weren't as close, Dave and Roxy could understand each other pretty damn well. Something about their mutual ‘disa-buddy-ty’ as Roxy so eloquently put it.

“Hey, Dave!”

Roxy always spoke loudly, but Dave couldn't mind. Besides, she hardly heard herself. He smiled at her and saluted, turning back to his phone for a moment. When he looked back at his cousin, she was waving at him to get his attention. When she caught his eye, she immediately began to sign, asking Dave what he was doing, where his sister was, and how he'd been.

It was always disappointing to end a Rox-versation©, mostly because she was the most fluent in his language, as it was hers, too. Plus, she was much easier to impress than his sister. Having a further familial tie made relationships seem less intimidating to him, like he could tell Roxy anything and by the next time she visited, all feelings and thoughts about it will have dissipated. It was a bit enabling when he thought about it, but he could live with that.

Eventually, he remembered Karkat and put their conversation on pause, checking his messages. 26. Oh boy...

CG: …SO BASICALLY, I HATE MY FAMILY, BLAH BLAH BLAH, TEENAGE ANGST, BLAH FUCKING BLAH.  
CG: MY POINT IS, I’M FREE TONIGHT. DO YOU WANT TO DO SOMETHING?  
TG: so thats where you were going with all this  
TG: you sure took your sweet time with that one  
TG: allow me the same courtesy as i consider my response  
CG: OH HA HA DAVE. I’M ON THE FLOOR, ROLLING WHILE LAUGHING MY FUCKING ASS OFF.  
TG: sounds painful  
CG: WHATEVER. DO YOU WANT TO DO SOMETHING OR NOT, WISE GUY?  
TG: what like you dont have a date with john or something  
CG: I TRIED MESSAGING HIM BUT HE WON’T REPLY.  
CG: HELL, HE’S PROBABLY OFF SUCKING FACE WITH VRISKA FOR ALL I KNOW.  
CG: SO NO, AS A MATTER OF FACT, I DO NOT “HAVE A DATE” WITH EGBERT.  
CG: ARE YOU EVER GOING TO GET TIRED OF CALLING US BOYFRIENDS?  
TG: alright calm down  
TG: no i wont  
TG: but in all seriousness  
TG: sure you can come over  
TG: rose is gonna be home soon so thatll take care of roxy  
CG: ROXY’S OVER *AGAIN*?  
CG: DID SHE FORGET SHE HAS HER OWN GIANT ASS HOUSE A COUPLE MILES AWAY?  
TG: come on shes not that bad  
TG: shes just been going through some stuff  
TG: lay off her a little  
CG: SURE. FINE. WHATEVER.  
CG: I’LL BE OVER SOON.  
CG: GET READY TO PRETEND TO LISTEN TO MY PROBLEMS, ASSHOLE.  
TG: you say that like i dont listen to your problems  
CG: YOU’RE DEAF.  
TG: its the thought that counts  
CG: FUCK OFF.  
TG: <3

~~~

“Joooohn! You can’t just take my powerup!”

“Sorry, Jade, but all’s fair in love and Mario Kart,” John replied, sticking his tongue out as his cousin went on to about how unfair it was that he got more bullets than them.

John’s sister, Jane, and Jade’s brother, Jake, were sitting nearby, waiting for a turn to play. Ever since one of them (nobody ever admitted to doing it) ruined two controllers by dropping them off the roof, game nights were never quite the same.

Jane and John were twins and, predictably, either got along perfectly or not at all. They were always plotting with or against each other, and their cousins occasionally took part in the schemes. Jade and Jake had been adopted legally by their father after the death of their grandparents who had custody of them back in Samoa. The four were raised as close as siblings since they moved in, although they looked as far from siblings as possible.

“Yeah, John, didn't your parents ever teach you not to steal a lady's powerup?” Jane interjected in her distinct Georgian accent. Jade furrowed their brow and frowned, holding their controller a little tighter. Jane opened her mouth to correct herself, but was distracted by Jake who had nearly fallen asleep. He was jolted awake, however, by a loud beep from the kitchen, in response to which Jane stood up.

“Those are the cookies! Be right back~” she sang as she walked through the doorway to tend to her baked goods.

“Huh. I thought something smelled bad,” John said, immediately rewarded with a punch in the arm from Jade.

Jane retorted from the kitchen. “Goodness John, wherever are your manners tonight?”

After John won the race, Jane was back with a plate of hot snickerdoodles. He drifted away from the cookie-party and checked his phone, having nothing else to do.

turntechGodhead [TG] began pestering ectoBiologist [EB] -:-

TG: yo john  
TG: karkats coming over and i thought id invite you  
TG: so when you read this i guess tell me if youre coming  
EB: hey dave!  
TG: oh hey  
EB: perfect timing, actually! jane just started serving the food of demons  
TG: ill never get how you hate sweets  
TG: its messed up  
EB: you're messed up  
EB: anyways, if karkat’s okay with it, i can totally come over!  
TG: oh im sure hes fine with it  
EB: did you ask him?  
TG: no?  
TG: i mean its my house  
TG: plus he fucking loves you  
EB: oh jesus  
TG: in fact i feel like im gonna be the one third wheeling here  
TG: sitting on the far end of the couch while you two go at it right next to me  
EB: he doesn't like me, dave!  
EB: and even if he did, you know i’m not gay  
TG: uh huh sure  
TG: just get your ass over here, you dweeb  
EB: fine. see you soon

John explained the situation in as few details as possible to his family before running upstairs to throw pajamas and extra clothes in a backpack. He never went to Dave’s this late without spending the night. He rushed out the door and left without another word, leaving his sister and cousins to their desserts.

After setting down the plate and taking a seat, Jane shook her head and placed her oven mitt-clad hands on her hips. “Didn't even stop to ask dad first,” she clicked her tongue, glancing at the door. “That boy is never up to any good…”

~~~

John pressed the doorbell next to the hard metal door of Dave’s apartment. “Open the door already,” he muttered to nobody in particular. He frowned and began to wish he had brought a jacket. Why weren’t there any normal apartment buildings in the city instead of just complexes? he thought. Then I wouldn’t be freezing my ass off out here. Shivering, he pressed the button again and could see the lights flicker from the micrometer of space under the door. He raised a fist to knock on the door, but let it fall limp back to his side. It wouldn’t do anything, anyway. So he waited. He took his phone out to message Dave and see if he was even home, but was interrupted by a loud thump coming from behind the door, causing him to jump and nearly drop his phone on the concrete. He turned to look through the small narrow window beside the door, mostly covered by a blue curtain. Peeking through the sliver between the curtain and the wall so he could make out what exactly the hell was going on, he gasped and nearly fell back when he saw Dave sitting on the couch. With Karkat sitting in his lap. Kissing him.

John felt sick. He turned and hurried down the stairs, steadying himself on the railing before he ran into traffic. This isn’t happening, he told himself as he took shallow breaths. John promptly left the complex and took the long way home. He needed to think about some things, but decided against it. He held his phone up and unlocked it.

0 new messages.

As John walked through his neighborhood, he avidly refreshed all of the messaging apps on his phone. Nobody on Pesterchum, nobody on Snapchat… He let his shoulders droop. Dave was busy with Karkat, so he couldn't text him for company on his walk. He was absolutely not going to hit up Jade or Rose, and most of his phone contacts were either boring or still in shock from the last prank John had pulled on them.

He scrolled past a contact, whose name was the spider emoji, the eight ball emoji, and the blue heart emoji. He hesitated before pressing the number and holding it to his ear. So what if she was his ex? He needed company, and fast. His world had just been flipped upside down. He could use a little familiarity.

“Hey, Vriska? It’s me. Mind if I spend the night?”


	2. Chapter Two: In Which Everyone Has a Dark Side

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Immediately following the events of the previous chapter. Sleepover shenanigans and big sisters.

“Joooooooohn! Stop it!” Vriska laughed, pushing the boy sitting next to her on his bed. He fell onto his back and laughed with her before sitting up and running a hand through his hair to fix it.

“Heh, okay, okay. But my question still stands: If you were theoretically forced to kill one of them, fuck another, and marry the last, who would you pick for each?” John raised an eyebrow and made his best poker face at his friend. This was a pressing matter, and it was time to get serious.

She tapped her chin with the tip of her cobalt-painted nail and looked up as if the answer were written on her ceiling. “Hmm… Well, I wouldn't kill Terezi, that's for sure. And Aradia’s never really done anything to get on my hit list…”

She looked at John and scrunched her eyebrows together. “But if you keep waggling your eyebrows at me, you might have a solid chance at getting on there yourself, wise guy.”

He rolled his eyes and fell onto his back again, raising a hand and swatting it around dismissively. “Oh, pff. Please. Just answer the question, Vriskers.”

She stuck her tongue out at him and gave up, falling back to lay next to him. “Alright, alright. I guess I'd marry Terezi, because we're gonna be together forever anyways.” She brushed a lock of hair out of her face and caught John's mischievous eye for a moment. “Not in a gay way, you doofus.”

He shrugged. “I don't judge. Anyway, finish answering.”

“Fine. I'd probably kill… Aradia.”

“Ohhhh! I'm gonna tell her you said–!” John laughed, cut off by a pillow “falling” onto his face.

“Oh, shut up! And I'm only saying that, because I don't know her well enough to… you know…” she trailed off, a blush threatening to spread across her pale cheeks.

John put the pillow on his lap and waggled his eyebrows. “Then...?” He leaned closer to her, laying his head on her shoulder.

“There's only one option left, goofus.” Vriska reached a finger up to pull his glasses down and off his face.

He laughed and did the same, leaving them both with blurry vision. He pulled himself away from her and stuck his tongue out.

“I'm not going to say it,” Vriska huffed, turning her nose up at him. “And anyway, it's your turn.” John leaned down to pick up their glasses and sat up straight, Vriska’s eyes following his shape vaguely until she could see again.

“Alright, lay it on me,” John sighed as he replaced his glasses. He fell back onto her bedspread and dramatically flailed an arm above his head, nearly hitting the headboard. “Who are the next victims?”

Vriska didn't bother pretending to consider this question, grinning devilishly as she crawled towards John. “All right.”

“Dave,” John’s eyes widened and he glared daggers at his friend. He knew exactly where this was going

“Karkat,” He moved his hand into view, specifically over his eyes, and groaned. He could feel his face heating up and wanted out. Nope. Absolutely not.

“-and Jane.” Vriska grinned and pulled her hair back, trying different styles before tying it up. John sat up and cringed, rolling his eyes.

“You know I'd never marry or… y'know…” John felt sick at the thought of him and his sister like that. “You just want me to tell you who I'd rather… god, they're my friends!” John raised his voice defensively and frowned, earning a shrug and a sneaky smile from Vriska. 

“It's just a hypothetical question, John. I don't know why you're making such a big deal out of it, honestly.” Vriska flipped her hair and frowned, pulling the hair tie out and trying again. John watched her deal with what seemed like way too much hair for one person to have and pouted at how nonchalant she was being. Hell, how nonchalant she’d always been. Sometimes he wondered how he was still so close with her considering all the times she’d neglected his feelings.

Since they met, John had been careless with what he trusted his friend with. Years passed with her telling John how to live his life, and it could have gone on longer if she was a little more convincing of an actress. When they decided to date, it became harder for Vriska to keep her schemes under the radar. As it turned out, spending every day with someone she was lying to was exhausting. Keeping all her stories straight was impossible when she was constantly followed by someone who had heard otherwise from her.

Thankfully, John could be painfully oblivious. Upon discovering Vriska’s dishonesty with him a year into their relationship, he broke it off but still insisted that they stay close friends. In fact, when she gave him back his promise ring he replaced it with a friendship bracelet; Vriska couldn't help but see them as a pair of handcuffs keeping her chained to a boy who accepted apologies she had never wanted to make.

“Can we not go down this road tonight?” John pouted and turned away from her, studying the embroidered sheets beneath him. Vriska opened her mouth to say something smart to that, but closed it when she saw how honestly upset her friend looked. She’d been pretty shitty to him a few years back, but she knew when to draw the line.

“Hey,” she said, voice hushed and almost concerned. “What’s wrong? I’m just joking, John.” Vriska moved herself closer to him and into his range of sight. “...John?”

He shrugged and sighed, then sat up straight and frowned. “You know what?” He raised his voice and slammed his fists down on the memory foam, getting more upset when they sunk in instead of bouncing off. “You know what,” he repeated, earning a strange look from Vriska. “This is bullshit!” Vriska blinked and checked to see if the door was closed before he continued. Aranea was a stickler about inside voices and appropriate language.  
“Why do they get to just get together and not even tell me about it? They invite me over and when I show up, they’re too busy making out to notice I’m even there!”

Vriska gaped and covered her mouth. “No way…”

John nodded and looked at her, finally. “I know, right?! I swear, it took ten minutes from him messaging me about coming over for him to forget all about it. I knew he was bi, but…” John struggled to find words and clenched his fists. “He didn’t even tell me!”

John was interrupted by a brisk knocking on Vriska’s bedroom door. Aranea, he thought. He and Vriska exchanged “we have awoken the dragon” winces and Vriska reluctantly stood up to open the door. It was cracked open barely an inch before her half-sister came barging into her room with a heavy textbook in her hands.

“Do you know what this is?” Aranea fumed, stage whispering and pointing a polished fingernail at the book as she held it up.

“Uh,” Vriska squinted and bent her knees to read the text on the glossy cover. “An Introduction to Ancient History in the Mediterranean: Unabridged US Version, 2005?” Aranea narrowed her eyes and pulled the book close to her chest.

“It is my study resource for finals. And if you and your friend don't mind,” she extended her glare to John, who was sitting sheepishly on the bed, “I would like to read this in peace.” Vriska visibly bristled, Aranea's tone suddenly making her feel very small. She had a way of doing that.

“Yeah,” she glanced back at John, and he couldn't quite place if she looked terrified, apologetic, or angry. “We'll keep it down.” She turned back to Aranea, whose blue eyes were fixed on hers behind thick lenses.

“I would appreciate it,” Aranea huffed, and with that she turned on her heel and left the room. The tension in the air remained thick until Aranea was well out of the doorway. Vriska breathed a sigh of relief when the door shut behind her. Thankfully, her company had been John who (1) had never gotten on Aranea’s bad side before, and (2) understood Vriska's submission towards her half-sister. Aranea knew how to assert her little authority over Vriska so she felt like a mere ant under her scrutinizing gaze, and John already knew enough of her dirty little secrets to not hold her to this.

Fortunately for Vriska, she knew enough of John's to get him to spill the beans. This would be a cakewalk. Or it would have been if that damn pang of guilt from years ago didn't still haunt her. John was a good kid, he didn't deserve this. But Vriska knew what she wanted, and nothing could really change her mind.

In the end, it still wasn't clear to her which hurt the most: the truth that she would need to win back John’s trust, or that she would have to break it again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Vriska: Manipul8 him**
> 
> Sorry for the wait! Enjoy :33


End file.
